Al Haig Meets Master Bop Saxes

Al Haig was one of the primal bop pianists. He endures in perpetuity with the spirits of George Wallington, Joe Albany, Dodo Marmarosa, Bud Powell and Elmo Hope. In the year 2000, Definitive Classics came up with a beautiful album of Haig's collaborations with tenor saxophonists Wardell Gray and Stan Getz, recorded in 1948 and 1949. Gray's genius is at once refreshing, his logic irresistible. Getz, like Gray, was profoundly influenced by Lester Young, and Haig was in many respects the ideal collaborator for their brand of bop-to-cool progressive jazz. That's why this music feels so pleasant and natural up inside of your head. Putting Getz and Gray together with Haig as the backbone of the collection makes all the sense in the world. This is superlatively hip music, perfect for cooking, booking, commuting, computing, operating heavy machinery or slacking off and cutting loose like there's no tomorrow.